First, Consider your Options!

If you are considering applying for a Fulbright, think carefully about the kind of grant you want to apply for (Academic (Study/Research), Arts, or English Teaching Assistantship), and the country to which you want to apply. You can use the Getting Started feature at the Fulbright US Student Program website to learn about the wide range of options available to you.

Review country and award requirements as you narrow your options. In the process, you can match your interests and strengths to the awards available to you. Recent alumni may also apply through Carleton and should follow the same procedures as rising seniors. Interviews may be conducted virtually.

If you apply for an Academic (Study/Research) or Arts grant, you’ll have to develop either a proposal for an interesting research or artistic project for which you have the appropriate experience and skills or a proposal to study in a particular program. The project must be something you can complete in the time allotted by the grant, usually nine months. In most cases, you must obtain and include in the application a letter of affiliation with a host institution. Be sure to consult with faculty in your field, and feel free to reach out to Director of Student Fellowships Marynel Ryan Van Zee for guidance as you develop your project idea.

English Teaching Assistant grants also require a project statement, one that deals with your ideas for and about teaching. You will need to provide evidence that you can be an excellent instructor and also that you will be able to engage with the local community in other ways.

By the beginning of Spring Term, you should make a provisional decision about what you will apply to do and where you will apply to do it. 

Pre-application Process

In the past, we have had a single pre-application deadline, regardless of the award type. Because those who want to pursue an independent research or arts project must secure an affiliation, we will now have two pre-application deadlines.

  • Applicants for Research and Arts Fulbright awards (which require affiliations) should complete a pre-application form by Monday, May 2, 2022, at 5pm Central Time.
  • Applicants for Study awards (to attend a graduate program) or English Teaching Assistant awards (which do not require affiliations) should complete a pre-application form by Monday, May 30, 2022, at 5pm Central Time.

An extensive set of resources for Carleton Fulbright applicants will be made available to those who submit the pre-application.

Summer Preparation

May through August, 2022: You will initiate your application through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program Online Application System, work on the required essays and forms, and identify recommenders, with advice from Marynel and your faculty advisors. 

Although you should confirm that your intended recommenders are prepared to support you, please do not enter their names into the system until instructed to do so by Marynel.

By Monday, August 22, 2022, 9:00am, a draft version of your application should be sitting in the online application system. At least the following parts of the application must be drafted:

  • Abstract
  • Host Country Engagement plan
  • Plans upon Return to US
  • Statement of Grant Purpose
  • Personal Statement

Marynel will provide feedback by August 29, 2022, at the latest. Drafted application materials provided after the August 22 deadline may be reviewed but may not receive the same level of attention as those received by the deadline.

Fall Term 2022

Early September: All applicants who are listed as ‘in progress’ in the online application system will receive information about the mandatory interview that is part of the Fulbright application process (interviews may take place virtually). Watch your email and respond as soon as possible to the instructions!

By Friday, September 9, 2022, at 5:00 p.m. Central Time (before Fall Term classes begin), your fully drafted application must be SUBMITTED in the online application system. 

Your application will NOT be submitted to Fulbright (you are not able to do that) ! Marynel will un-submit your application after she has downloaded it.

If your application requires a letter of affiliation that you do not yet have, or a translated version of your Statement of Grant Purpose (which you should not write until your English version is finalized), please upload a blank page for each of these items so that you can hit ‘submit’ on your application.

The version available at this point will be used for the interview and endorsement process, and should include recommendations (and language evaluation(s) if required for your award/country).

Transcripts may be ordered free-of-charge through the Hub and an official transcript must be included with your application materials. 

Between the first day of classes and the final Fulbright deadline for submission of your materials, you will work with Marynel and others to complete the application process. The steps include:

  • Submission of any remaining materials (letters of recommendation, letters of affiliation, and language evaluation(s), as required);
  • Practice (optional) and final (required) interviews;
  • Further revisions of the application materials as recommended by Marynel and others;
  • Final campus evaluation of candidates and the submission of all materials to Fulbright by the official deadline.

**There is absolutely no slack given for the Fulbright deadline in early October. The site closes at that time, and submission is no longer possible. ***

***BE SURE TO FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS FOR FINAL SUBMISSION IN THE ONLINE APPLICATION SYSTEM BY THE OFFICIAL FULBRIGHT DEADLINE ***

After Submission

Following the October deadline date, applications are evaluated by National Screening Committees in the U.S., and some of these are forwarded to the host countries for further review (applicants are notified by the end of January whether their applications have been forwarded). We expect final decisions between March and early May, but sometimes notification can come later.

Spring Term, 2023: We will celebrate the winning of many Fulbright awards!